School attendance rates in Bridgend county are “slowly increasing” since the Covid-19 pandemic, but remain below pre-pandemic levels. This is according to a report discussed by a BCBC scrutiny committee yesterday (pdf).
58 fines were issued for unauthorised or unexplained absences during 2023-24 – with term-time holidays being a particular problem.
Figures also show that up to 6% of primary school pupils and 16% of secondary school pupils had attendance rates of 80% or below, with a hardcore of 5% of secondary school pupils attending school for 50% or less of the time.
The council aims to improve school attendance by 2 percentage points during 2025.
A new campaign – “Miss School, Miss Out” – has been running since the end of the 2023-24 school year.
A traffic light system (green, yellow, red) has also been developed, with pupils with an attendance rate of 92% or less deemed to be “in the red”. Parents and guardians are sent letters showing this information.
Attendance rates in Bridgend have since improved to above the Welsh average. However, there’s a warning that council budget cuts to Education Welfare Officers could lead to gaps in support and early intervention, putting more pressure on children’s social services in the long run.
